TILLY
ZEACE, a homeless woman, has been approached by OSCAR FISHBEIN, a washed-up
screenwriter, to participate in the first segment of TONY THORNTON’s new
“reality-based” TV show.

STREET
SHOCK, a Unicorn Studio Production, would feature each week a different segment
of the underclass. For the first episode, TONY wishes to feature TILLY and
other street people in a segment about the homeless; he and a videographer,
armed with a hand-held camera, would follow TILLY around as she does what
homeless people supposedly do.

TILLY
is drawn to this project because she believes that the American public has a
skewed view of street life, and she wishes to present another point of view.
However, while TONY wants the final product to “feel real” to his audience, he
also wants the segment to have a plot, so the studio has hired OSCAR to write
up a script, one filled with stereotypes about street people and depicting
TILLY as a shabby alcoholic and drug addict who has no choice about her
circumstances. However, as OSCAR gets to know TILLY better, he slowly sheds
these preconceived notions.

For
a time, it seems as though TILLY will be able to present the “real Tilly as
street person” to the American public, but a complication presents itself: the
DIVINE MS. ALTA UNIVERSE, a “New-Age” guru and the new owner of Unicorn
Studios, adds her own agenda to the script; she insists on adding a scene in
which TILLY converts to a new-age Christianity and abandons her “evil” life.
Adding to this mix, TILLY, in a monologue, reveals that she is not exactly what
she appears to be.

In
the middle of this muddle, GINGER, a shallow young woman harboring her own
secret, shows up on the set and complicates everyone’s life even more,
especially TONY’s.

TILLY
soon discovers that reality-based TV has its own set of rules, so she must
decide whether she wants to play by those rules or retain her unfettered way of
life.

But
then a dramatic change occurs, affecting each major character in some
significant way; even so, this STREET SHOCK episode has limped along through
production and is now ready for its debut.

What
happens when STREET SHOCK is finally shown to a live audience? Will theatre
goers get a genuine glimpse into the life of a homeless woman? What overall
commentary does this play impart about American culture and entertainment?

Throughout
the play, these questions are addressed, some implicitly and some answered in the
“The Wrap.”

For
the overall societal implications for our culture, each reader/ playgoer must
arrive at his or her own conclusions.

Christmas
Eve, 1968: history is made as Apollo 8 astronauts deliver their Christmas
message from orbit around the moon.

On earth,
at The Crystal Ship, a rock and head shop near Hollywood, California, Jennifer
Semple listens to the iconic broadcast and, through the fog of drugs, ponders
the future.

In
the ensuing days, the 18-year-old girl experiments with LSD and other drugs;
juggles a crumbling relationship with a notorious drug dealer; and tries to
make sense of life at 2001 Ivar Street, a Hollywood, California, apartment
complex where hippies, drug dealers, freaks, strippers, groupies, college
students, Jesus Freaks, counterculture gurus, drag queens, rock stars and
wannabe rocksters, svengalis, and con artists converge during one of the most
volatile periods in history.

Then
her grandfather finds the girl and coaxes her into returning to her Iowa
hometown, where, unknown to her, she is still considered a minor.

After
a series of events and blowups with her grandparents, she is dragged into the
Iowa court system and involuntarily committed to the Cherokee Mental Institute
in Cherokee, Iowa.

While
incarcerated, she corresponds with Jeff, a new boyfriend, and also interacts
with other patients: Wolfie, a psychopath who preys on other patients; Penny, a
17-year-old unwed mother; Carrie, a teen cutter with strange obsessions about
rats; Joyce, a young married mother enthralled with “10 ways of suicide”; Drew,
a young man facing a stiff prison sentence for possession of marijuana; and
D.J., a 42-year-old mentally challenged man and 25-year resident of Cherokee,
among others.

Finally
released from the institution, Jennifer flees Iowa and settles in Pennsylvania,
where she still lives today.

As
young Jennifer narrates her late 1960’s memoir, how will the older and wiser
Jennifer, now voluntarily returning to Cherokee as a visitor, reconcile that
painful time in her history with her current ordinary life as a wife, mother,
grandmother, and teacher?

A
family reunion awakens the voices of Samantha’s relatives, dead and alive.

“Time,
An Other,” the opening story, describes Samantha’s first memory; other stories
move forward and backward and forward in time. “In the Name of God” places
Samantha’s daughter and granddaughter in New York City during 9/11;
“Psychedelic Bingo” moves forward to 2035; “Time, Suspended,” the last story
(set in 1990), reveals a family secret.

“Are
You EVER Going to be Thin?”: the title story, interweaves childhood letters
from an aunt with a grandmother’s dire warnings.

“Cut,”
a bonus story added to the Kindle version, delves into Samantha’s fascination
and fear of fire and her willingness to court danger as she befriends a
prisoner via mail.

Also
included: “Are You Thin Yet?” the essay that inspired the title story and this
collection.

For Educators and Book Clubs: The
Kindle edition includes questions for discussion and 25+ creative writing
exercises.

Sample Discussion
Question and Writing Exercise:

In the
title story “Are You EVER Going to be Thin?,” Samantha is a silent presence as
two alternating voices address her in various ways. Who are they, and how do
their own attitudes toward Samantha’s weight inform her own self-awareness and
body image? In what literary form does each voice address Samantha, and why are
both forms important to Samantha’s understanding of her familial relationships?
The author has said that she was influenced by Jamaica Kincaid’s classic short
short story “Girl.” How are the two stories similar? How are they different?

Writing
exercise (about 250 words): Based on a “voice” from your own past (or made up),
write a short fictional passage in which an adult is addressing a child (who
remains silent).

Copyright Notice

BuyMyBook.org (website, artwork, and all text) is copyright 2011-present, by Jennifer Semple Siegel.
*
This text may not be republished or reposted without permission from the author/webmaster.
*

Privacy Notice

We use third-party advertising companies to serve ads when you visit our website. These companies may use information (not including your name, address, email address, or telephone number) about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you. If you would like more information about this practice and to know your choices about not having this information used by these companies, click here.